On February 25, 2015, the Bureau of Indian Affairs of the United States Department of the Interior issued revised guidelines involving the placement of Indian children into foster care or the termination of parental rights so that the child could be placed for adoption. Those guidelines are to supercede those that had been in effect […]

The news media has been carrying stories almost weekly if not more often, about T.V. personality, Sherri Shepherd, and her court case involving a gestational carrier. As has been reported in the media, Sherri Shepherd and her husband entered into a written agreement with a woman to serve as a gestational carrier for them in […]

In February 2015 a three judge panel of the Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey issued an opinion involving application of the Indian Child Welfare Act and the requirement to notify an Indian tribe of a pending involuntary termination of parental rights. The New Jersey Division of Child Protection and Permanency sought […]

The Challenges of Adopting a Toddler While many adoptive parents want only newborns, statistics show that nearly half of all domestic adoptions (47%) and a majority of international adoptions (59%) involve children between the ages of one and four. Authorities say that, with the large numbers of children between the ages of six and 12 […]

Getting the Information You Need from a Prospective Birthmother When you are considering adopting an infant, and have learned about a potential birthmother, you may have a lot of questions, the answers to which will help you determine whether the relationship is a good fit. Experts advise caution as you gather information from a potential […]

How to Work Most Effectively with Prospective Birthparents When you are seeking to adopt an infant, one of the most harrowing aspects of the process can be the uncertainty involved. Even though you may have met with the prospective birthmother, and feel that you have a relationship of trust, the birthmother can still change her […]

Adopting a Child without Using an Agency—The Benefits and Risks of Independent Adoption Though public perception often seems to indicate that most families seeking to adopt work with an adoption agency, statistics show that private or independent adoptions are far more common. Though five states require the use of an adoption agency, agency adoptions typically […]

Tips for Dealing with the Challenges of Adopting an Older Child If you’ve decided to adopt an older child, you’ll find that there are advantages and disadvantages: There are more older children readily available for adoption You’ll have more communication at an earlier level Your child will likely have formed attachments or bonds to other […]

Understanding the Cost of an Adoption Most estimates put the cost of raising a child at more than $20,000 per year, not including the price of a college education. For parents of a biological child, there’s little expense in bringing the child into the home that isn’t covered by insurance. But if you plan or […]

The Adopted Child in Society—No Longer a Stigma Attached Not so long ago, adopted children were viewed somewhat as social outcasts—the perception often being that they were “illegitimate” or “bastards.” In fact, until the advent of so-called open adoptions, even adoption professionals took a pretty secretive approach to the process. Often, parents would hide the […]